Devotions for Teens

[Soldier4Christ]

  Being Obedient to Christ

As they approached Jerusalem and came to Bethphage and Bethany at the Mount of Olives, Jesus sent two of his disciples, saying to them, "Go to the village ahead of you, and just as you enter it, you will find a colt tied there, which no one has ever ridden. Untie it and bring it here. If anyone asks you, 'Why are you doing this?' tell him, 'The Lord needs it and will send it back here shortly.'" Mark 11:1-3

When the disciples were told to go into the next village and look for a donkey, they must have looked at Jesus with confusion on their faces. They probably thought his request was a weird one. I can just imagine them whispering back and forth to each other as they walked the path to find the donkey saying, "This is crazy. What are the villagers going to think when two strangers walk into their town and just go up to untie and take a donkey that someone hitched there?...we'll probably get thrown in jail." Even though they didn't fully understand the reason Jesus wanted them to go get the donkey, they did it anyway. They were obedient.

Jesus wants us to be obedient to Him even if the request seems to make no sense at all. We are not to question, we are just to trust God and obey. Many times we can't see what God is up to, but He knows exactly why He has asked us to do certain things. Have you ever felt led to go up and talk to someone you barely know at school? Maybe you've felt led to compliment someone or just be friendly to them that day. Following the promptings of the Holy Spirit are crucial in our walk with Christ. Even when we can't see His hand, we have to trust His heart. The next time you feel Jesus prompting you to be obedient in an area of your life, do it...even if you think it's weird or doesn't make sense. If you are willing to let God use you, He will but you have to be willing to be obedient.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Living Like You Don't Belong

Since you call on a Father who judges each man's work impartially, live your lives as strangers here in reverent fear. For you know that it was not with perishable things such as silver or gold that you were redeemed from the empty way of life handed down to you from your forefathers, but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or defect.
1 Peter 1:17-19

As Christians, we sometimes forget that we don’t really belong to this world and that we are only passing through.  Instead of making the most of the time we have here, we often get caught up in things we shouldn’t.  When we get caught up in the things of the world, we lose focus and become unproductive in our Christian journey.

This last week I took a vacation to Boston to visit my girlfriend’s parents.  We had the best time touring all over Boston and the surrounding areas.  We went and visited Cape Cod, we checked out some lighthouses and we even went deep-sea fishing.  Want to know how we accomplished so much in one week?  I never forgot I was on vacation.  I was a Houstonian in Boston and never lost sight of that.  I knew I only had a few days to explore so I made the most of the time I had.

What do you think would have happened if I had gotten into Boston and tried to find an apartment?  What about if I had tried to interview for jobs?  My vacation would have not seemed like a vacation would it?  I would have wasted the time I had, instead of doing touristy things and exploring.  The same is true when we, as Christians, get involved with earthly things.  When we stop telling others about God and start chasing after money, good jobs, trying to fit in, we have lost sight of our purpose on this earth.  Don’t get me wrong, there is nothing wrong with these things if we don’t allow them to become more important than sharing the gospel with others.

As Christians, we need to remember what we are supposed to be doing here.  We are strangers in this present world, sent on a mission for God.  We are here to have a relationship with Christ, and spread His love everywhere we go.  We don’t have a lot of time on this earth and need to make the best of the time we do have.   D.L. Moody says, “What has your attention, has you”.  What has your attention today?  Are you remembering you are not home?  Or are you trying to make this place your home?  Refocus your thoughts and heart today on God and begin to live in to the calling you have received.  Don’t waste the time you have here, the lives of your friends and family may depend on it.

[Soldier4Christ]

  The One and Only

“There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God.”  I Samuel 2:2

As I walked the halls of a new school, I just couldn’t shake the feeling of dread and pessimism as to how this school year would be.  I was, after all, a . . . I couldn’t even bring myself to say it.  I was a . . . seventh-grader.  Wow, does it get any lower, any less-respected than this?  For the past year, I had heard stories from the front lines.  Seventh-graders who would get word out of the horrible ordeal they were enduring.  As those stories made their way to us in sixth grade, we knew that soon our time would come.  And now here I was!

Sixth grade had been so different.  I actually had a sixth grade class of nine!  That’s right, single digits.  And now, as part of a class of almost 300 seventh-graders, I felt lost, abandoned and very alone.  The people I passed in the hall were unknown and very intimidating.  Seventh-grade was just wrong!

Several years later, as a senior in high school I had the opportunity to go back to my middle school.  I saw the seventh-graders walking around in a funk trying to find their way.  And yet, I was a senior.  No longer subject to the curse of seventh-grade.  I was free, confident and powerful.  As I walked down the halls, even eighth graders moved to let me pass.  It was a very different world. 

Unfortunately, I soon found that being a senior hardly keeps you from ever feeling alone or unknown.  But there is something that does!  It’s knowing the one and only.  There is no one like our God.  If you think you’ve figured Him out, well, then you’re WRONG!  It can’t be done.  You may think you know of His power, His love, His ability to utterly change a life that was going nowhere and make it something amazing.  But you haven’t even scratched the surface.  Even as a seventh-grader, you can experience the joy of knowing and having a relationship with the one and only.

Someday, every knee of every eighth grader who gave you grief, every bully who ever made you fearful, or every person who just ignored you will bow before our God and our King.  Even if right now you’re just a seventh-grader.  If you are, walk the halls with your head high and remember – It’s good to know the King!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Your Spring is Coming

There is a time for everything, and a season
for every activity under heaven. Ecclesiastes 3:1

I went to the school today to pick my little cousin up early. As I rode in front of the school, a familiar scene stood before me and really made me think. When I was in high school at East Clarendon, I took some sort of class that Mrs. Sherrilyn taught for all three years. The reason was I loved that class. It seemed to always make my day better, even though I hated math. I always had her class in the middle of the day. For the first couple of classes, I would look forward to going there because it relieved the stress from the beginning of the day and helped me face the last class of the day. Each year I sat in the same spot, which was by the window. When I first moved to Turbeville at the end of my tenth grade year, I picked that seat in her class. The first day I was there, I was beginning to wonder why God had put us there. It was such an unfamiliar place and I was surrounded by unfamiliar people who had known each other their entire lives. I looked out of the window and across the street there were three trees with lots of white flowers covering them. In the midst of all that unfamiliar territory I found something I knew, God's hand at work. For the next couple of years around the same time, I'd look out that window and see those trees and think about how far I had come since the first time I saw them. I have faced many trials since I first noticed them, but God had seen me through, and there I sat - not defeated - gazing upon the beauty of Him.

So why did this familiar scene touch me so much today when I saw it? When I saw those trees today, God layed something on my heart to share with everybody. I know some of you and some I don't, but I want to instill in you a little bit of the hope I have. You may be facing a trial today. Maybe it's the same situation I was in, where you're somewhere new and surrounded by all unfamiliar things. Maybe everything in your life seems to be going wrong. People might be bringing you down by their words or actions and you just feel like what's the point in even trying? Child of God, you aren't defeated. Jesus won the victory for us, we just have to claim it! See, those trees had to go through a fall and a winter, when they lost all they knew and used to be. Yet in the spring, they bloomed beautiful white flowers again that seemed to get bigger and prettier each year. If you take the time and look around you, you'll find God's hand at work in even the small things. You can look back and past times and see how He's brought you through. He will do it again, He is our hope. Even though the trial you're facing may seem to be your fall or winter, press on, your spring is coming.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Stand in Awe

Be still, and know that I am God; I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth. Psalm 46:10

Sacrifice and offering you did not desire, but my ears you have pierced [or opened] [or ‘but a body you have prepared for me’]; burnt offerings and sin offerings you did not require. Psalm 40:6

For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgement of God rather than burnt offerings. Hosea 6:6

What do you think, from these verses, is more important to God?  Our sacrifices to Him and our work for Him, or that we just above all, stand in awe of Him?  God does not desire sacrifices if we aren’t truly acknowledging/praising and being thankful for the One to whom we are sacrificing!  Have you ever done that (given something of yourself for God, without really having a reason for doing it)?  Sure, the Bible gives us plenty of reasons why we should be thankful to God and praise Him, but do you actually have a personal reason for why you are thankful to God?  Or are you just in general ‘praising God’ without really thinking about why you need to praise Him?

Sometimes we need to slow down in our lives and take some time to just be with God, alone.  We need to stand in awe of God, and we need to each have a personal reason for why we are thankful to Him.  God doesn’t want our sacrifices if He really doesn’t mean that much to us in the end.  In our lives, we should overall choose to live in awe of God and be motivated to love Him deeply above everything else.  Above all else, God wants our hearts, and all of our hearts at that!  So open your eyes to the world around you.  Wake up and smell the coffee.  What has God done in your life that is worthy of praise?  Believe me, if you think and pray about it enough, you will definitely in time be able to give many reasons for why you are thankful to God.

Now, I’m not saying that sacrificing different things for God and serving Him is wrong in any way, but when it comes down to it, we should only do those things if we are doing them out of our awe and praise for God.  God smiles at sacrifices that come out of truly thankful hearts, but it really does not please Him when we do things for Him only out of a heart that feels like it must do things for Him to be accepted into His embrace.  That is not a good reason to serve God.  So, in the next week, ask yourself this:  Why do you serve God?  What are truly thankful for that God has done/given you in your life?  Could you honestly say that you serve God out of a heart of love for and awe of Him?

[Soldier4Christ]

  Trusting in the Lord

Trust in the LORD with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding;in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight. Proverbs 3:5-6

Have you ever been through a period in your life when these verses might have come in very handy?  There are generally times in the life of every Christian when they could definitely be quite useful.  This is very practical wisdom for anyone who might find themselves wandering in the desert of despair, confusion, or just plain not certain of what to do; or conversely, what not to do.

I can recall a time in my life not so long ago where I was in one of those places.  They are not particularly exciting nor, enjoyable places to find oneself.  I was one to always want to "fix" things in my own wisdom.  Well, that came to a screeching halt about five years ago.  Perhaps the Lord decided, "enough is enough" it's time to move this individual to a higher level.  As I was walking, or better yet, crawling my way through this hard period of my life, a friend shared these verses with me.  They also gave me a simple interpretation of them which was so very enlightening and practical for me.

It went something like this: "Trust the Lord with your life, don't try to figure it out on your own (you never will), look to the Lord for the answers and He will find the way out for you."  As much as I didn't like admitting it at the time, I had to go back and read these verses every time I started to take control of things again.  This happened on a pretty regular basis, like almost every day!  Was I hopeless or what!  I can recall my daughter Kimberly greeting me, "good morning dad, who's in control today?"

Then after a while, as I began to let God take over, the thick fog began to lift and good things started to happen for me.  Positive happenings.  The kind of events that only the Lord knew were best for me and it seemed, at just the right time.  Remember that saying "God is never late"?  Well, I am here to attest to you all, truer words were never spoken.  We often seem to forget that God is sovereign and He alone is truly in control of all things in the universe.  That includes every last one of our lives, without exceptions.

What you ask, is the big secret to this?  It's our free will.  The Lord will never force His will on us.  We must surrender up our will in deference to His.  Once we have done that, He is then free to guide our lives into all of the blessings that He has waiting for us.  I encourage you, after you have tried everything else, give it all up and simply trust in the Lord.  And as the verse says, do it in your heart, not just your mind.  As so many of my good friends and children know, it works. God always honors our faithfulness and obedience to Him.  Believe me as I say this; when you give it all up, He will bless you life in some very amazing ways. 

[Soldier4Christ]

  Heard Any Good News Lately?

Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen. Ephesians 4:29

Today you heard some juicy gossip about one of your friends. You can't wait to share it, so you call another friend and give them the latest info. It feels kind of good to be "in the know" and it even feels kind of wicked to share something no one else knows, doesn't it? It isn't that big a deal, is it? Everyone does it. Gossip is alive and well on planet earth. But, what does the Bible have to say about it?

According to Ephesians 4:29, we're not supposed to talk badly about one another. We're supposed to only say nice things, things that build each other up…right? So why is it so easy to share the bad things and so hard to say good things about our friends? It's because we're walking in the flesh instead of the spirit. Next time you hear a juicy piece of gossip, remember Ephesians 4:29 and don't fall prey to the desires of the flesh.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Independent is a Four Letter Word

Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will ear or drink; or about your body, what you will wear....for the pagans run after these things, but your heavenly Father knows what you need. Matthew 6:25,32

I recently was camping with my boyfriend and his family last weekend, and we found a tiny baby kitten. She was so weak and scared. We took care of her and I took her home. She now depends on me for EVERYTHING. I need to feed her from a bottle, hold her, help her into her litter box and clean her every day. She hates being apart from me, because I supply all her needs. Without me she wouldn’t be able to survive on her own.

This new experience has really opened my heart. Thats the way God wants us to be with Him. We were not made to be independent. We were not meant to deal with our own problems, we were not meant to worry about life. God has created us for Him. He knows what is best for us, and knows what we need. Most of the time we don’t’ look to the Lord for the things we need. When we step out from under God’s protection and become independent from Him, thats when things being to fall apart. We become frustrated and angry. We wonder why things aren’t going well. God has created you to depend on Him for everything. The Bible tells us not to be anxious for anything. We need to pray to the Lord, because He gives us everything we need. He supplies every breath we take. He allows us to live another day. I know that I would never want to be independent from my Creator. I want to look to Him for all my needs. Because when I try to go out on my own and take care of myself, the world caves in. I can’t survive without my Creator. He feeds me. Clothes me. Gives me life. Remember to look to the Lord for all your needs. He is your Father and loves you more than anything.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Reverent

Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed - not only in my presence, but not much more in my absence - continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.  Philippians 2:12-13

This message is important for every Christian to know.  These two verses talk mainly about regarding God and our salvation with fear and trembling (with reverence), as a result or because of all that God has done in and through us.  Let me elaborate on that. He provided His salvation for us through Jesus, the result of His amazing love for us.  HE didn't have to create us in the first place, and He didn't have to give us another way to Him after we botched up our union with Him.  But He DID choose to do those things, each and every time, and He doesn't regret making us or letting us know Him.

Then why, I ask, do so many Christians regard God without proper reverence?  Sure, God can be seen as our friend and ever-forgiving Savior because He is those things.  That's where some people leave/stop their exploration of who God is, though, and don't see other aspects of God.  He is also our Creator, our Protector, indescribably all-powerful, and many other things.  He also asks for our respect and reverence like in these verses, and doesn't nearly receive enough our our reverence and sacrifice.  I also admit to not always giving God enough thought, enough of my time and devotion, that I need to be more reverent of God in my life.  Are you one of those people who only sees God as a casual friend?  If so, you need to look deeper into the character and nature of God and study why He needs our reverence, awe, and adoration.

There is so much more to God than anyone on this earth can ever know, but that gives us no excuse to approach God like He's a once-a-year or once-a-month friend who we have little or no respect for.  Do you truly live your life with the realization of how indescribably awesome and powerful God is?

[Soldier4Christ]

  The Victory of Defeat

For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for Me will find it.  Matthew 16:25

Up is down, back is front and lost is found.  For the Christian, life holds many kinds of paradoxes.  Although a difficult truth to understand, God did help me see it more clearly.  I learned about these paradoxes while doing one of the most holy of all activities.  Reading my Bible? Nope!  Praying?  Nope!  I was playing softball and it was the 6th inning of the league championship.

Our team was winning 5-4.  However, it was only the 6th inning.  The other team still had a chance to tie the game up in the 7th.  I was up to bat with two outs and men on first and second.  It was a nail-biter.  But I had a problem.  The centerfield lights were right in my eyes.  I don’t know why and it sure didn’t make sense, but I couldn’t see a thing.  All I could do was guess when the pitch was coming and swing at it hoping to hit it.

I fouled off about ten pitches in a row.  I was doing everything I could to give our team more runs.  But I just couldn’t see the ball.  After fouling off a couple more pitches, the inevitable happened – I swung and missed.  That’s right, I struck out!  I was so disappointed.  Until . . . the umpire yelled, “That’s it!  That’s the ball game we’re all out of time!”  Can you believe it?  The time limit had been reached and the game was over.  I won the game by striking out.  I know it’s crazy, but it’s true.

Only with Christ can we win by losing.  In fact, our surest way to victory is through surrender.  Surrender to the one God who wants to take all our fears, doubts and struggles and handle them Himself.  Next time you’re up to bat and it feels like you’re striking out, remember, on God’s team we win by losing.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Sinking Like a Rock

‘Lift it out,’ he said.  Then the man reached out his hand and took it.  II Kings 6:7

I’ve never been a big fan of science.  In high school, I struggled through my only science requirement, General Applied Science.  Numbers are fine and history wasn’t too bad, but science just kind of didn’t mesh in my mind.  Although I did like the playing with fire and combining elements stuff.

But even with my small scientific mind, I can comprehend one thing – iron does not float!  You know the heavy stuff they used to make sinks out of.  Get it, sinks?  Anyway, iron is heavy, it goes to the bottom like a rock.  And yet, here’s the problem.  In the verse above a man is commanded to “lift it out.”  What he is lifting out is an iron axe head which fell into the Jordan river.  He’s not lifting it out because the Jordan is so shallow but because the crazy thing was floating.  But we already established that should not happen.  So what made the difference?  In a word, God!  You see, He told Elisha to cut a stick and throw it in the water and the iron axe head began to float. 

Think of all the things going on in your life right now – school, family, relationships, etc.  Many times it feels as if a lot has just settled to the bottom of life.  What we need is a way to lift some of those things up, to make them float so that we can get a better handle on them.   That’s where God comes in.  He has the great ability to “lift up” the burdens of life.  Take a moment now and ask Him for his help.  Ask Him to lift some things up for you, so that you can “lift it out.”  The best part is he’ll do it, even if you don’t like science!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Right Thinking

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable--if anything is excellent or praiseworthy--think about such things. Philippians 4:8

Our behavior always starts out as a thought deep within our minds.  In this verse, Paul provides some excellent insight and instruction as to how we formulate our responses, behaviors and actions with others.  In this Post-Modern society of "doing it my own way thinking" that we live in, this exhortation of Paul's is a very useful thought process for us to make good decisions in our lives.  The modern expression "engage brain before opening mouth" comes to mind when I read this verse.  Christians should always try to filter their thinking through it before engaging in conversation with others.

Now many of you might say "that is much easier said than done!"  However, when we gave our life to Jesus, we were provided the power of the Holy Spirit to help us when we feel inadequate.  Remember the words of encouragement that Paul gave us in 1 Corinthians 2:16: "For who has known the mind of the Lord that he may instruct him?" "But we have the mind of Christ."  What Paul was writing to the believers in Corinth was that no matter how hard they struggled and what opposition might come up against their thoughts to live pure and Godly lives, they had been given the strength to overcome them.

So also, do believers  have that same ability in 2007.  There is no reason for us to not claim that verse and apply it to our own lives.  Christ never changes; He is the same today as He was in 60 AD when Paul wrote those words of encouragement, and He will be the same tomorrow.  We can rest assured that Christ will be there for us just as much as He was for the Corinthians.  In a world that has gone so far astray from kindness, goodness and giving love to others, Christians can make a real difference. 

My challenge for you is to live as Salt and Light, in a dark and dreary world.  Whenever you are with believers and non-believers alike, try to keep this verse in the forefront of your thinking.  Remember, once our words have gone out from our mouths, we can never take them back!!  How many times have you wished you could?  So, before you speak, consider the Godly advice Paul gave us to make a lasting and positive impression on those around us.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Free at Last!

I am the vine; you are the branches. If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing. John 15:5

The school year is coming to a close and on that last day, lockers slam, papers fly through the air and excited students, just like you, run down the halls shouting for joy.  They've realized they're finally free at last- free from homework, free from tests, free from projects and demands.

It's a great thing to realize that you're no longer going to be under stress from schoolwork, isn't it? The summer is usually a time for hanging with your friends and just relaxing. With no worries, it's easy to just kick back and chill.

God wants us to realize that sometimes, we "sweat over the small stuff" instead of relying on him for our strength. He wants us to relax and let Him handle things in our lives. As we learn to abide in Him and trust in Him, we can have that freedom. Every day can be a day that we experience freedom in Christ if we'll just let him have control of our lives. Why not kick back with Jesus and let him take over? It's a lot easier to give that control in your life to Him than try to handle things on your own. Try it, you might like it!

[Soldier4Christ]

  Mistkae

..Return to the Lord your God, for He is gracious and compassionate, slow to anger and abounding in love, and He relents from sending calamity. Joel 2:13

Have you ever made a mistake? If your anything like me that question alone, made you think of about 50 mistakes you made in the last month. Whether big or little, we have all made mistakes. Mistakes that hurt us in the end, or hurt others. In my life, I hate making others feel bad by something I said or did, especially someone I love. I’ve definitely stuck my foot in my mouth more than once in my life, and I’d bet the farm on it that it will happen many more times. I hate that feeling of as soon as I say something I feel that little dude inside ( conscience) saying, "Why in the world did you just do that." But it’s a love hate relationship with my conscience. I hate that I do and say stupid things sometimes, but I love that the Lord put our conscience inside to know when we are hurting those around us or hurting ourselves.

God alone is perfect. As humans we will make mistakes on a daily basis. Whether we realize the motive for our mistakes or not, in the end we need to ask for forgiveness. Sometimes we have a good motive for the things we do and it ends up biting us in the back-side. Sure we mean well but sometimes we need to see things as they are. The beauty of the mistakes we make is that we have the opportunity to learn from them. When we make a mistake, we see the outcome, we ask for forgiveness, and we learn not to do it again. Hurting those around sometimes comes with the human package, we will continually make ‘stupid’ mistakes, but we need to be humble and ask for forgiveness and rebuild trust. God is quick to forgive and slow in anger. As humans we need to try to be quick to forgive and slow to anger. Because, face it, you will make mistakes, people around you will make mistakes that hurt you and we need to forgive. Everyone makes mistakes. And if you love someone forgiveness is something we must do on a daily basis. Or love will mean nothing in the end. We all make mistakes. Respond in godly love and learn from the them.

[Soldier4Christ]

  Fearfully and Wonderfully Made

For you formed my inward parts; You covered me in my mother's womb.  I will praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;  Marvelous are your works, and that my soul knows very well.  My frame was not hidden from you, when I was made in secret [before being in the womb}, and skillfully wrought in the lowest parts of the earth.  Your eyes saw my substance, being yet unformed.  And in your book they all were written, the days fashioned favor me, when as yet there were none of them. Psalm 139:13-16

We all come from different families.  Some of us were born into families with two married, loving parents.  Others were born into and raised in unloving families, families often with a single parent, families wrought with divorce or conflict, or maybe there is some other stressful situation involved.  And these days there are many children in orphanages, foster homes, or who have been adopted into homes.  Maybe one or both your parents have died and/or you live with other relatives or people.  Or maybe you just don't feel like you deserve to be alive, or don't feel wanted by anyone on this earth, like you were never meant to be born.

I'm sorry if anything I have just said struck a painful memory or wound in your life, but it is my wish to only remind you of one simple, true, and wonderful fact, no matter what your family  background (or lack thereof?) is.  You may have already guessed that this topic relates very much to the verse I have shared at the top of this page.  If so, you are right.

You ARE loved, cherished, and rejoiced over.  You were created by the only One who could create you.  He chose to create you, made you into an amazing creation, forming every part of you physically and has great plans to mold you into a man/woman of Him inwardly, if you only let Him.  You have so much growing and molding potential in your life, that it is unimaginable who amazing God is to want to walk through us while we change into men/women of Him!  I know I don't deserve any gift He gives me, but I am thankful that He does bless me in these ways!

Remember, God has your days and hours and minutes written in His book, and decided to bring you into this world and create you before you were in your mother's womb!  Before He created the world and any people, He had you in mind, and knew what you would look like, inside and out, and declared you beautiful and good!  Sure, we're not perfect and we do not always do God-pleasing things, but that does not change how much God loves us and how He planned for us before the world began.  He doesn't love the sin, but He loves the sinner is a statement that comes to mind when I think about this topic.

I completely understand and am not naive about the different situations many people including myself have entered when God brought us into the world and the different situations we have grown up in, but regardless of those, God brought each of us here, not as mistakes or unloved children, but as loved, cherished, and chosen children with a purpose and plan to be here.  He may not have brought us all into ideal situations in our minds, but that is all part of His plan that you will understand, if you have chosen to accept salvation through Jesus' sacrifice on the cross, once you are reunited with your Heavenly Father in the place He is preparing for us now.

So do not believe you are unloved, uncherished, like a mistake or unplanned-for, because your Heavenly Father brought you into this world and designed who you are, and loves you indescribably every moment of your life.

Praise Him because you are fearfully and wonderfully made, and know that God has great plans for you in your time on this earth (Jeremiah 29:11)!